A day trip

Source: roverscout1love

Older Scouts paying a visit to London looking smart showing the change to co-ed in  recent years with their leader.
While often much is made of camping, hiking and learning skills during the weekly session trips can play an important part with imparting knowledge and showing the relevance of what is taught to everyday lives.

From one generation to another

Sometimes the interest of the young in Scouting at its different levels may lead to overlooking the role of adults within it as leaders, instructors without which much in scouting simply would not be possible because they pass on their skills and knowledge to the next generation.

The majority of roles within the organization of Scouting are entirely voluntary in nature with people putting in time outside of careers to help raise the the young and often as a part of putting back in that which was offered to them as boys in scouting.

Into the 1980's

While time moves into another decade, the one that was in my last years at high school small alterations were made in the World of Cubs which has holding a certain fascination with me during this period.
They were still recognizable as as cubs to me as those I grew up with in the 1970's were.
I have tried to clean up this noisy photograph taken in 1984 of a Cub Scout pack in Dronfield, Sheffield, Yorkshire.

Respect all living things

On what is a bank holiday here, I've been out rovering around the time in the past thoughts would be toward Autumn and the return to school after being off.
There's little getting away from what the cub experience means to me but this photographs subject talks of something I feel strongly about and it is teaching respect for other living species such as ponies.
We are fortunate here that outside of farms, within walking distance there are areas where ponies and horses do graze so youngsters can easily get to see them and form attachments.
It interesting to see in this vintage photograph a few pairs of white shorts while the majority are grey and a few boys are wearing school coats or blazers even if they are clearly in cub uniform!

Enroute

The advance part perhaps or the most physically able, the have not just their own things strapped to their backs but are carrying the Standard and flag pole too on this sunny summers day.

Sometimes things that are challenging like hiking with things on you do take something out of you, that's for sure, but it's the attitude you take toward it, the recognition of how that makes possible that which you enjoy which makes the difference.

It's the real indication of a sense of maturity.

The spirit of the young cub

This may not be the best photograph out there of a younger cub scout although I have tried to enhance it a little but to me it's the spirit of how I may of looked in '71/2 just eligible to become one, gangly, thin and possessed of a cheerful outlook wanting to hum or sing short songs for the sheer fun of it.

Walking along today I heard two children of the same sort of an age merrily doing just that walking back with Mum and a dog in tow and it came over me to question where all that tends to go and why those I knew in cubs kept more of that.

I think because it recognizes work is better when looked on as an opportunity than unwanted downer and that scouting especially in cubs accepts children are just that and plays to your juvenileness creating spaces for it rather than trying to knock it out of you.

The obvious examples to me are cub games, campfire singing and gang shows.

Thank goodness B-P understood that!

Scouting today

Modern day scouting whatever ones thoughts on it is co-ed something that was discussed on this blog a while back so there's no real need to rehash those arguments and this picture is a reflection of that with girls in trousers (and some even in shorts) and good number of boys following the grey school shorts revival in UK schools also wearing shorts more than was the case several years back having passed being a cub even if that wasn't something the 1966 Advance Party Review would of approved of.

Today some 25% of youngsters in scouting are girls preferring the Scouting Association's program over that of Girlguiding UK at all levels.

From its formation in 1970, the Baden-Powell Scout Association has been co-ed even when most respects they are more traditional and you night speculate had Scouting been formed today would two totally separate organizations for each gender been formed rather than possibly single gender packs within one whole.

Still these young people are getting a lot out of scouting and that really is the more important thing. 

Righting wrongs

We're working toward getting a uniform together as I'm  progressing personally which will be a work in progress because there are a number of items required and normally there's a period through induction before you get to wear it and get your first badge.

Having got plenty of traditional grey ribbed socks, grey shorts obviously and  green garters a actual XL cap was good start point and while at some point a actual green bottle green woollen jersey will come in, for the moment I have a bootle green plain jersey that will suffice.

Look at our tent

It looks something like a tight squeeze in this tent with seven of them but they do just about fit in although I think it would only sleep about three or four comfortably.
It is unusual in the UK for under nines to sleep under canvas as cubs unlike in the days of the Wolf Cubs and they sleep in sleeping bags in a hostel or similar building with Akela and instructors with them.
The main thing is they're enjoying the experience of being out of doors.

The Wolf Cubs and I

This blog pays very much homage to the the whole spirit of being a Wolf Cub the original and in my opinion best setting for those between eight and around ten and half years who wanted to be in scouting .
Every so often and it is was at the core of the Advance Party Report of the mid nineteen sixties, the view is taken society has change so much that youth no longer want to be a part of something that is a part of an older tradition.

Strangely enough, boys do actually like the notion of following in past footsteps, of being at camp singing songs by a fire, of roughing it while getting to grips with nature being focused on the practical skills rather than just a different kind of academic study, knowing more of the theory.

The call of the boy is in traditional practical skills woodcrafting instincts and the hike, the major role of the group where everybody knows each other rather than the District and HQ;
Scouting is a Boys game, not an exact science that lends itself to tightly structured approaches.
It's not about Standards of Scouting so much as the Standard of Effort as B-P put it, namely it's what you put in, to encourage learning a skill and above all self confidence that moves that boy on, giving of his best.

It recognizes a need for starter badges and awards to get boys going before moving  along, providing the FUN as he develops character rather than formal character development that keeps older boys still interested.

The photograph shows Wolf Cubs in Kent, England in 1966, a year from when they swept from the Scouting Association and four years from the formation of the Baden-Powell Scout Association.

Motivation

There's something very much captured in the front cover of this book that can go missing from either those who romance on about scouting pasts or from would be leaders more concerned with the letter of the rules rather than why they exist.

Scouting at whatever level you may be engaged with needs to be above all a thing you feel, that excites and motivates you to the point you look forward to the time you set aside for it whither or not its an evening at the Scout HQ with your friends, camp or other opportunities to apply those principals and ideas.

It should feel as if you are going on an exciting adventure together learning, doing things and having fun - an unforgettable experience - NEVER a chore.

Fun in the pack

The boy on the top right could easily of been me about thirteen with the priceless slightly screwed up facial expression except I wouldn't of had anything to do with earrings back then had the journey I wished to go on had happened  because by that point not only would I of been in high school, I'd also of become a Scout having with any luck developed my abilities, skills and personal character in Cubs which I was perfectly capable of.

The one thing that would of been most likely is that wherever local rules permitted, I'd of worn tailored shorts rather than longs which is what I did most of time at this age despite attempts to get me into corduroy longs or jeans

Garters with green 'flashes' are a thing with me from the days when socks did not have lycra so easily fell down toward your ankles and were part of the cub as well as well as school uniform and I do own a pair.

Plaid parading

While I'd rather the technical quality of this image was higher here is a good indication of the kilted scout taking part in some parade, all if you look closely are wearing wristbands which suggest to me this is a more contemporary picture than a number.

The usual image of a cub or scout tends to be one of either in shorts or longs which I don't personally like but hey that's another story for another day but in Scotland and oddly enough Belgium kilts as part of the uniform is really a thing and they certainly look very smart in them with their sporrans.

I'd rather more boys tried kilt wearing if either they fancied a change or find shorts don't suit them. 

Map reading in the field

Source: roverscout1love

Map reading in the field isn't so different than doing so in the scout hut or for that matter at school involving using the scale to ascertain distances, noting the six figure grid reference and notable features so you can be sure you are on the correct pathway.

The main challenge in the field is holding it and this Scout not being based in the UK has disadvantage as our Ordinance Survey maps used for scouting and hiking are designed to fold up neatly so while having a flat surface to rest it on is a help, you can use it without with just the sections you need on display.

It is also something I'm very good at.

Exploring the coast

Exploring the coast is something I loved to do as often you find different species of flowers and grass growing apart from the seabirds you see if they don't fly all over you which is what these Scouts are doing.

They are properly dressed for such an  activity looking smart for good measure.

There's something magical about being sat as a group of boys on grass or a convenient stone, eating your sandwiches watching the waves go back and forth.

Drawing a line under a past incident

One thing I wrote about on my main blog and mentioned the odd time in passing is the symbolism of cub scouting as part of a childhood denied and the extent to which it was the first manifestation of my reversion to being more like the eternal boy of ten I always felt in my mid teens.

The former did as anyone who has read this blog page to page knows mattered and the latter involved using what had been left toward the back of draws from the time previous plus bits of my younger brothers cub uniform after he'd left.
My earliest regressive experiences did involve dressing in cub attire  but following the accidental discovery of the garters I was gutted to be informed they'd all been thrown away as "You no longer need them" at which point you felt like saying "define NEED Mum".
Anyway, while not being identical to the one I had then, I now have the early 80's version, the nearest one can get to restoring a lost link to the past although no doubt at some point I may well get the new 'wolf cub' cap, kneckerchief, green top, and garters a well know Derbyshire supplier stocks in adult sizes although when it comes to footwear I do take boys rather than men's sizes.
A line is can now be drawn under that part of my past.

On task

Source: /roverscout1love

Something in my bones tells me these three Scouts are following an exercise as the one on the left is using a pencil or pen, the one in the middle is reading something pointing it out to his friend on the right who seems to be holding a portable tape recorder that I wouldn't normally of expected them to have out ordinarily.
It *may* have clues or other information on it.

The Cub Crouch

Source: tedbangor

Here, these two modern day cubs crouch in time honoured style as the cubs of my generation did, a pose that just looks so good as that young cub who has has accepted the role of Akela, the old wise Wolf in teaching and guiding them.

These two also have made good progress judging by the contemporary badges sown on their green top which are a little different to ours but basically the same. 

Rewind to the past

Source: tedbangor

Back to when this adventure really started in 1973 where this Cub Pack  appears to have been convened for a official photograph with their Akela although this could not of been taken at a regular meeting as a number of them inexplicably are in school uniform.

With those few exceptions they are the kind of Cubs I knew in Junior School.

Looking after yourself

One thing while out scouting you need to be aware of is risks from the vegetation such as insect bites of which I had a couple and also nettle stings which I did experience for the first time in decades where I accidentally caught an overgrown  one that was almost blocking the pathway leaving me with a nasty rash on my left leg just below my shorts.
I took a anti-histamine tablet for that later on and after a day it had gone.

Cubbing it

As mentioned on my Tumblr I was away for a few days so thought I'd post something that is about what as a Wolf Cub in spirit I did during that time today.

I enjoy rovering or hiking in the open countryside not just as a kind of physical exercise which it is but also for the opportunities it provides for me to learn to make the most of it and in doing so be the best version of me I can.

I really prefer being outdoors being challenged engaged very much with nature even with my disabilities. A more active and harder life is I feel better for me than just sitting in front of the tv or computer most of the time.

While doing this I observed and smelt these attracting many bees in the area to their nectar.

I love wildlife of all sorts and have always had a fascination for spider's webs every since the age of seven when I saw them while waiting for a lift to infant school by a farmer who daughter also attended at the edge of his field.
I thought this one was awesome! The blackberries also were good and tasted well have had a few.

Along the designated walk there were considerable expanses of woodland of which this is a good example, teaming with all sorts of wildlife and also ideal for climbing which a friend who was with me did.

There were a good number of various butterflies about where we were and I observed this one sharing a plant with a small bee.
This was one time where with my sluggish reactions, I was glad of the camera's own auto focus rather as in the past with my Minolta X500 fine tuning the point of focus manually as you are taking it and naturally it moves in the single second you go to take the shot.

For me this activity was just the thing I need to be doing in my life and why the spirit of the Wolf Cub matters.

All pictures taken on Nikon D3500.

Why I go away

It is Thursday so apart from things I normally do today, I am back after a few days away and when the camera battery has charged back up, I'll post a few things on here about those things I did that come from a wolf cub like space during that time.

A number of people I was with did ask a bit about what it is I like doing as some people are more of mindset of preferring to stay with a centre playing a game or making something but as you all know that's not me although I do like arts and crafts and aren't opposed playing games with people.

For me exploring things like nature or an area, identifying species, habitats all in the open are are the things I love mixed in challenges, learning new skills, pretty much scouting really when you think about it.

It's also the unity, the espirit de corps the bond between you I love too as boys together which is captured well in this image.